Realms Are Characters, Too
by Balin Lord of Moria
Summary: In this two-shot, Legolas and Gimli write about the "personalities" of Elven and Dwarven realms, respectively, showing that the locations of Middle-earth are just as much characters as the people are.
1. Elven Realms

**A/N: **My knowledge on Menegroth and Nargothrond, especially Nargothrond, is pretty vague, so forgive me if I've written a few inaccurate details. Each chapter has a quote from J.R.R. Tolkien about his philosophy on fantasy and daydreaming your own fantasies to escape the poisoned real world in your heart and mind.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own The Lord of the Rings or its accompanying stories, the Tolkien Estate does.

* * *

_"Fantasy is escapist, and that is its glory. If a soldier is imprisoned by the enemy, don't we consider it his duty to escape?. . .If we value the freedom of mind and soul, if we're partisans of liberty, then it's our plain duty to escape, and to take as many people with us as we can!"_

- J.R.R. Tolkien

* * *

**Elven Realms**

**by Legolas**

Here, I, Legolas son of Thranduil, Dwarf-friend, recount in brief detail what has made the realms of the Elves so individual and personal to each person who wishes to dwell in one of them. An Elven realm's individuality comes from what a resident or visitor gets out of living in or visiting it, what he/she values most in beauty, comfort, and relationships with others. It is my hope that in the Age of the Dominion of Men, as many men and women as possible may learn how to escape the tribulations and future evils of the world, by remembering what we Elves made to live within in Middle-earth, and meditating or daydreaming on their natural beauties rather than complaining and bending under the corruptions started by Morgoth and Sauron.

* * *

**_Eregion_**

This is an ancient home of the Elves of the Second Age. It was a beautiful place with many natural forests, green grass, stones and boulders, and numerous lovely cities and specific regions, including Eregion's Elven capital, Ost-in-Edhil, near the West-gate of Khazad-dûm, but perhaps what made it so individual were its relationship with Khazad-dûm, or Moria, as we know it now, and the main vocation of the Elves who dwelt there. Celeborn and Galadriel, and later Celebrimbor, used their time to contribute to the Creation of Eru, sub-creating things of lasting beauty and value, and they had an unusual friendship with the Dwarves of Khazad-dûm, trading valuable goods with each other, and contributing to making life thrive as well as their works thrive. Eregion had many workshops within its cities, and even some special landmarks made specially for making and storing their valuables, and it was inhabited and run by the craftsmen of the Gwaith-i-Mírdain. One might say that it's personality was that of a realm where friendships were strong, things of beauty were made or forged, and Creation was valued above everything else. Making things was its pride and joy. It is my hope that, what with my friendship with Gimli, the remaining Elves in Middle-earth can befriend the Dwarves of Erebor and Aglarond like those ancient Elves and Dwarves did. Anyone who values friendship and partnership, and wants to improve on Creation without spoiling it, would want to dwell in Eregion if it still existed.

* * *

**_Gondolin_**

This was the realm of Turgon, a Noldor Elf Lord and son of the courageous Fingolfin, and for a time, his sister Aredhel lived there, too. It was a hidden realm that lasted longer than any other Elf realm in Beleriand did, though even it was lost in the end, due to the treachery of Maeglin, Aredhel's son. Gondolin was a sort of fortress-city, built to withstand very powerful attacks, and the Noldor who dwelt within it lived out their lives mostly in peace and quiet. Turgon was also known for forging many swords there that would see great deeds in the future, including his own sword, Glamdring, Orcrist, and the dagger that would later become Sting. As a clandestine city built like a fortress, with its magnificent palaces and towers and smiths, Gondolin is perhaps the most militant of the Elf realms, and a person who loves a well-protected city would feel at home there any day.

* * *

**_Nargothrond and Menegroth_**

They are perhaps the most fortified of all Elven homes, both having originally been built by Dwarves. But that does not mean that they are Dwarf realms, though Nargothrond once was one. Nargothrond was a stronghold where a massive treasure was kept, until the Dragon Glaurung laid waste to it, and Menegroth was a thousand caves underground in the forest of Doriath decorated with natural plants and murals unmatched in Middle-earth. Like Gondolin and Eregion, both are gone now, but they are remembered as places where Elves lived with strong protection from evil, so perhaps someone who likes protection from violent elements would like it best there.

* * *

**_Rivendell_**

Imladris, or Rivendell, is one of the most celebrated of lasting Elven homes, and for good reason. It has wondrous architecture, like carvings of legendary figures and tapestries of the histories of Elves and Men, soothing water runs freely through the valley in the form of waterfalls and a river, and there is the House of Elrond, the Last Homely House East of the Sea, with an elegant structure, peaceful parlors and bedrooms, and a Grand Hall for special banquets. The atmosphere is so peaceful, and it feels like a domestic house, too, meaning that one can speak, sing, eat, drink, read, study, or just relax and think in complete peace and contentment. And residents and visitors alike can enjoy real beds in bedrooms instead of sleeping in the wild. Evil things do not come into that valley, making Rivendell one of the safest places to be in Middle-earth. People who love beautiful and elegant houses with peace and tranquility, and safety from evil, will adore it in this magical place.

* * *

**_Mirkwood (Greenwood)_**

On the surface, this forest may not seem like a very welcoming place, but you just have to know where to look. The forest _has_ fallen into a state of decay ever since the secret return of Sauron and the construction of Dol Guldur, but the Wood-elves (my own people) who live here have found spots where we have cleansed of the evil things that infested them, and here we enjoy festive feasts and singing. We also sample the finest wine from Dorwinion and some tasty cheeses from Lake-town, and my father, the Elven-king, is a hunter who never misses his prey. The forest glades are the best places for our feasts and sampling of wines and cheeses besides the Elven-king's palace. Those who like the thrill of the hunt, or who enjoy wholesome feasts and good wine and cheese, will love it here, a realm of excitement and festivities with a benevolent ruler.

* * *

**_Lothlórien_**

This is the other safest Elven realm that still exists in Middle-earth, and it gladdens my heart that it still has not entirely faded in beauty. It has the tallest trees in Middle-earth, the _mallorn_ trees, where many flets can be found as homes for the Elves. Like Rivendell, it too is guarded by some sort of magic that prevents evil things from coming in, though it is also protected by Elven archers who are clad in grey cloaks that conceal them in almost any location in the known world. Based on what I felt while I was there, particularly when spending time alone with Gimli, I will say this; if Rivendell is a realm of very practical beauty and comfort, then Lothlórien is a much more spiritual realm, with less conveniences and no indoors rooms, but greater and purer elegance and light, as well as a stronger connection to nature. A seeker of the light of Elbereth or Eärendil will find all the nourishment he/she wants in the Golden Wood.

* * *

**_Ithilien_**

Ithilien is a fair country in Eastern Gondor with climbing woods and swift-falling streams. A wealth of sweet-smelling herbs and shrubs as well as many tree species can be found in the forests, and there is still a disheveled loveliness about the place. It is shielded from the East by the Ephel Dúath, and from the North by the Emyn Muil, open to the Southern airs and the moist winds of the Sea. It is also a place where I feel very much at home, more so than in Mirkwood, even. I love the feel of the winds of the Sea, though they do nothing for my longing to sail over the Sea, and the woods and streams are handsomer and cleaner than in Mirkwood, which is still in need of some cleansing. And the trees! They match those of the Greenwood in loveliness. It is a wondrous place for one who, like me, wishes for the best of two worlds, the wood and the Sea, and I love the Wood-elven colony I have set up here.


	2. Dwarven Realms

**Dwarven Realms**

**by Gimli**

Here, I, Gimli Elf-friend, hero of the War of the Ring, talk about the individual characteristics of several Dwarf realms throughout Middle-earth. It appears that what differentiates them are the sorts of beautiful things that are made there, and the kind of architecture of the place. I am hoping, through these words, that men learn we Dwarves have had to work in mind and body our whole existence, but with a purpose that can be, and is, redeemed by the Grace of Eru working through Dwarves like Thorin, Balin, and myself, among others, as well as that, like us, man can assist Eru in enriching creation through dedication to remembering, fantasizing, and desiring to dwell in realms like our old homes that we built for our own spiritual reverence of Him and His servant, Mahal. Perhaps our tales will become as proven real as your own tales during your dominion, and be redeemed and reshaped into heavenly forms both like and unlike their present ones.

* * *

**_Khazad-dûm (Moria)_**

Here is the most well known of all Dwarf dwellings in Middle-earth, the old Dwarrowdelf of Durin the Deathless. Now it has become an abode of Orcs and Trolls, though the Balrog who once ruled it is gone now, and some of Durin's Folk think it can still be reclaimed someday. However, in its glory days, it was a place of grandeur. The halls, now called by most "mines", were many-pillared (and still are), and had a very high, gold ceiling, with black, obsidian, glass-like walls and silver roads. We mined and dug for gold and silver, gems and jewels, and _mithril_, the most valuable metal in the world, found only in Moria. Being our ancestral ground, chosen just for us, just outside the East-gate is Kheled-zâram, the Mirrormere, where Durin saw a crown of seven stars encircling his head, signifying that there was the spot for Khazad-dûm to be built, as well as his spiritual sovereignty over the other six Dwarf Fathers. Even as Moria, Khazad-dûm is sacred ground for the Longbeard Clan, a vast city, or perhaps country, with the most grand decor, soaring archways, airy ventilation, plumbing, and crystal lamps, with _mithril_, wealth, and lovely rubies, pearls, diamonds, and sapphires to beautify the halls, treasuries, armories, and Dwarf lodgings even more. And there's always room for one more to live there. The lodgings are comfortable and even opulent, basic three-room groupings with diamond-patterned basalt or green limestone walls; there is a living room with a wide hearth, a storage room, and a refuse and relief room, with fur or lambswool rugs on the floor of the main room, and torches or lamps that make it easy to see the thick, elaborate, woven wall-trappings. Only people who are claustrophobic or dislike the underground intensely would not appreciate this holy ground. Though made for Dwarves, anyone who loves beautiful things, grand halls with geometric designs, and/or a hard-working country in general, will never want to leave the glory days of Khazad-dûm!

* * *

**_Belegost and Nogrod_**

While not as holy or as elaborate as Khazad-dûm, these twin Dwarf realms of the Firebeards and the Broadbeams, respectively, were grand, too, in their own way. Belegost was a mighty Dwarf city where the Dwarves worked hard every day to make the best possible armor and weapons in Middle-earth. They made and perfected the first chain-mail armor, and made wicked-looking but very effective masked helms, which they put to good use in the Wars of Beleriand, and were the finest smiths and stone-carvers on Middle-earth. The halls of Belegost were perhaps not as geometrically perfect or as colorful as those of Moria, but they made up for it with larger and mightier armories and treasuries, making them more militant than the home of Durin's Folk. Nogrod, it's closest neighbor, is very similar in style. It, too, had great armories and treasuries beside its halls, buildings, and streets, but perhaps it's forgeries were its greatest landmark, for Nogrod boasted the greatest Dwarf smith who ever lived, Telchar, apprentice of Gamil Zirak. It's a shame they were mostly destroyed when Beleriand sank beneath the Sea, but there is some remnant of them in what's left of the Blue Mountains, and some Dwarves make a humble living there. Belegost and Nogrod seem like places good for people who enjoy battle or smithing, or who just like good armor and weapons.

* * *

**_Erebor (Lonely Mountain)_**

This is my own original home. It is the greatest Dwarf realm for Durin's Folk since the fall of Moria, and even after temporarily losing it to Smaug, we still claim all legal ownership of it. We call it the Kingdom under the Mountain, and for good reason, because it's a kingdom under a mountain where Dwarves live and work. While smaller than Khazad-dûm, the Lonely Mountain has many of the same things it had. We have gathered a hoard of gold and silver, and we carve countless things out of stone. Our armor and cups are beautiful, and we enjoy it so much here that we often make things just for the fun of it. As a neighbor of the restored kingdom/city of Dale, the residents of the Mountain have found another kind of trade. We have toyshops here where we make the most marvelous and magical toys, and through this practice, we made Dale's toy market the wonder of the North! Even apprenticeships are made between our smiths and carvers and the Men of Dale, and no one is really poor, not even people not worth speaking of. Finally, if _mithril_ is the prize of Moria, the jewel called the Arkenstone is the jewel of the Mountain, worth more than anything else found in the Mountain's mines. It now sits on Thorin Oakenshield's tomb. Our trade here is what defines Erebor, I think, and the building of marvelous toys for Dwarves and Men to enjoy is, too; even Moria was not a place where we could make toys and give them to people other than our fellow Dwarves.

* * *

**_Grey Mountains and Iron Hills_**

These two locations are not known to be among the greater of Dwarf realms, but we Dwarves have done everything we can to get something out of them anyway. The Grey Mountains were a good place for us to do some good mining for gold and diamonds, and our halls there were quite handsome. Unfortunately, the seemingly endless string of cold-drakes drove us out. But while we were there, we prospered, and we held out for as long as we could. According to my ancestors, they were very... stony. They didn't reach the majesty of any of the above realms, though they were rich with gold and jewels. As for the Iron Hills, we still have possession of them, but they are perhaps our least outstanding realm, or at least the least outstanding for Durin's Folk. Nonetheless, they are important to us, especially during the time we were exiled from Erebor. The Dwarves of Grór, Náin, and Dáin Ironfoot mined for iron-ore there, and sent it abroad to support the Dwarves eking out a living in the Blue Mountains. Without them, the exiled Dwarves may have gone bankrupt long ago. I would say that the Grey Mountains are good for those who like beautiful, but simpler, halls and treasure, while working-class people would most appreciate the Iron Hills as a place to visit or live.

* * *

**_Aglarond (Glittering Caves)_**

Now this is my pride and joy in life! Not just mine, but the pride and joy of any humble Dwarf in Middle-earth. Even non-Longbeards would love to tend to these caves. It's the only place in Middle-earth besides Lórien that is fairer than Khazad-dûm, and my heart is full of it. Here, there are immeasurable halls with a never-ending music of water that tinkles into pools as fair as Kheled-zâram, with gems and crystals and veins of precious ore glinting in the light. Columns of white and saffron and dawn-rose, many-colored floors and glistening pendants on the roof, still lakes mirroring everything, and so many other carven things of designed magnificence, it made me weep to leave them after the Battle of the Hornburg. It is even built just the right way for a Dwarf city; there is chamber after chamber, hall opening out of hall, dome after dome, stair beyond stair, enough that I have now established my own Dwarf colony here, and I have been proclaimed the Lord of the Glittering Caves. And as I promised to my best friend, Legolas the Elf, my kin and I tend to these glades of flowering stone, not quarry them. We do not mine for gold or diamonds here; we use cautious skill to take off a small chip of rock and no more each day, so we can work, and we shall open up new ways and display far chambers that are still dark. And there are lamps like those of Khazad-dûm; when we wish, we drive the night away so we can live and work and play, and when we desire rest, we let the night return. Yes, here is a Dwarf realm that no one, Dwarf or otherwise, could fail to fall in love with, and anybody who loves caves like a glittering paradise shall find heaven in these halls!


End file.
